Toso/Story
'Fondness Story' i. When Will Spring Arrive My name is Toso Wine, and the man standing in front of me losing his shit is Tortoise Jelly. This man seems to be always complaining about something. I'd love to just shut him up, but I can't help but feel slightly guilty about the hut that had been completely crushed under the dying Fallen Angel. His incessant nagging digs up memories of another similar man, who wouldn't stop complaining either... "TO! SO! WINE! ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME!? HOW MANY TIMES DO I NEED TO REMIND YOU!? YOU CAN'T JUST FIGHT FALLEN ANGELS WITHOUT CARING ABOUT YOUR SURROUNDINGS! WHY DON'T YOU EVER THINK ABOUT THE CONSEQUENCES!?" Ah, it seems my absent minded behavior has finally driven Tortoise Jelly over the edge. Seeing the pot of medicine in his hand sent a chill down my spine. I hurriedly bowed my head, the breeze from the motion dislodging a few strands of hair from my ponytail. I couldn't help gulping as I chanced a glance at this old fashioned man. ...I'm doomed. Seems I've completely driven him up the wall this time. I made a quick assessment of the situation and reached a definite course of action. I turned and ran. Tortoise Jelly's howl of rage sounded out behind me, with Wonton's laughter in accompaniment. "Wonton! I'll come eat with you guys some other time after Tortoise Jelly has calmed down! Seeya later!" Well, I guess I should go through the introductions again. The man going apeshit just now was Tortoise Jelly, and the guy bent over from laughter beside him was Wonton. They live with some of the other Food Souls at the Forgetful Courtyard. Although I don't stay with them, I show up from time to time to mooch food off them, or share some wine, or let Cloud Tea patch up my injuries. The way things are though, I doubt I can mooch food off them anytime over the next few days. I scratched my head and thought about where to go, sighing as I reached a decision. The place he always wanted to visit, but was never able to - Zhongcao Town (1) Translator’s Name: Translated literally it means Middle Grass City ii. Determination Zhongcao Town was a small town rumored to discriminate against Food Souls. It was reported that the Fallen Angels in the region surrounding the town were multiplying, since none of the town's Master Attendants were capable of exterminating them. As a result, Fallen Angel attacks on humans were becoming increasingly common. I stared at the afternoon sky, and decided to move a little quicker. With any luck, I would be at my destination before sundown. The road was surrounded by those same mountains and rivers I had become used to seeing. I propped my weapon against my shoulder, and raised my wine gourd, letting the wine within flow down my throat. The scent of alcohol enveloped me. Suddenly, a flash of animosity. I wiped away a trickle of wine from the corner of my mouth. The nearby forest was dimly illuminated by suspicious flames. Those crimson eyes that blazed with uncharacteristic familiarity, that thick miasma of alcohol that clung close to his body like a shroud... I emptied the contents of my gourd onto my blade, then wiped it off with the palm of my right hand. "I've been waiting for you. Come get some." I fought the Fallen Angel until he was close to death, then pursued the dying Fallen Angel through the depths of the forest. Seeing him weaken, I brought the blade in my hand downward at supersonic speed. However, just then, I was struck by a new sensation - a weak, but persistent spiritual force. A quiet, wavering voice reached my ears. "Please, don't go... Please... Wake up... Please..." I looked at my quarry. Even weakened, he would still take some time to exterminate. I wrinkled my brow, and pulled myself away toward the direction of the voice. Why would there be anybody in this forest? And this Spiritual Energy... could it be a Food Soul? I reached the source of the sound, and could only grip my sword hilt in desperation. I was too late. Again. I sighed deeply, expelling the feelings of melancholy in my chest. Then I sat down next to the Food Soul. The Food Soul who had used all her energy, all her effort, and who had still been unable to save her Master Attendant. She was a fragile girl, as soft as a rice cake. She couldn't have been any more different from me. Yet, the way she continued to desperately exert spiritual energy in spite of the tears streaming down her face awoke a curious feeling inside me. That desperation, and the despair of using all your energy, yet being unable to save the person most important to you. The Food Soul I saved was named Qingtuan. Maybe the heavens intended for the rain to wash away the pain she felt. I watched her sobbing in the rain, her small silhouette reminding me of myself from a time long ago. It was drizzling back then too. The chill of the past melded with the rain, seeping deep into my bones. But still colder was the knowledge that nothing we did would bring back the people important to us. Silently, I stayed by her side for a few days. Seeing her force a smile, I asked, with complete sincerity, whether she would like to come with me. She had no more Master Attendant, and lived in a town that discriminated against Food Souls. There would be nobody to even console her. Yet, she was filled with a determination in contrast to her soft and weak appearance. I saw the conviction in her eyes, and realized she had already made her decision. This kind of determination was not for some stranger to meddle with. When I left the town, Qingtuan saw me to the town gates, gently waving her hand as I departed. For a second, it seemed that there was an indistinct shape by her side. Deja Vu. That takes me back. iii. The Beautiful Springtime My Master Attendant was a renowned doctor, receiving the nickname ‘God of Physicians.’ Despite his youth, he was able to treat diseases even the elderly veterans in his field couldn't. However, he was unable to treat the affliction that plagued his own body. He was by far the most talented doctor around, and unquestionably the most hardworking of his kind. Yet all his efforts did not produce a cure for his own, inevitably fatal sickness. Every waking moment was a battle to wrest more time from the hands of the grim reaper. Yet he never lamented his fate and never held a grudge. Everyday, he would unconditionally welcome those who came seeking his help. He would even travel thousands of miles despite his weak constitution just to treat those who had become too sick to move. More than once I tried to stop him, well aware of his declining condition. Each time he told me the same thing: “There’s always a possibility that this might lead me to finding a cure for my illness. Even if that doesn’t happen, I will have saved one more life, and that is always good.” When seeing patients, he always put on a warm and kindly smile. Only I have ever seen his sadness as he contemplates the reality of his failing body late into the night. It wasn’t that he was afraid of death. However he was more terrified that his teachers, his family, and his friends would worry about him. In his medical journals, I came to learn of certain rare herbs that only grew in dangerous locations. I began to sneak out at night while he was sleeping, searching for those herbs he had been more focused on during his studies. The herbs were located in far more dangerous places than I could have imagined. I wasn’t always able to return before he woke up, and I wasn’t always able to return unharmed. When I came back injured, he would nag me without pause. But slanted eyebrows and a firm voice weren’t enough to change my mind. I always thought of him as the type of person who could never get angry. Then one time, I nearly lost my life at the hands of a Fallen Angel while trying to pluck an herb growing on a cliff face. In his rage, he flung the contents of his medical cabinet on the ground, shattering bottles and pots of medicine. As I watched the carpet melt from the noxious concoction of medicines, I could not help gulping nervously. It was the first time I had felt anger greater even than that of a Fallen Angel. My survival instinct kicked in. I obediently returned to my bed and did not argue or try to leave. Still furious, he confiscated my blade and left. He returned a short while later, gently picked up my hand and began daubing medication on my fingers, which had been torn raw and bloody from desperately clutching on the cliff edge. “Toso. You’re called Toso Wine, a liquor said to grant blessings and avert disasters. I don’t want you taking on such huge risks for my sake. I just want you to live happily and peacefully. You’re not just my Food Soul, you’re family to me as well. Promise me you won’t do something so stupid again.” I stared at his expression, and knew there was no way I could say no. iv. Averting Disaster The subsequent days went by peacefully. I no longer went out herb gathering, and his condition stabilized under his careful ministrations. Everything seemed to be going well, and I hoped that things could go on peacefully like this forever. However, natural disaster struck, bringing with it starvation, and insidious pestilence. Hearing the news from refugees streaming in from the city, he grabbed his medicine box without even pausing to consider that his body was still weak and recovering. And I stood behind him, following his emaciated shadow. I knew there was no way to stop him. We walked in the direction people were fleeing from, and he resolutely entered the plagued lands, treating the sick and the dying. Within a few days, he had lost even more weight. True to his title of ‘God of Physicians’, the plague was eradicated under his efforts. As I watched him smile warmly, seeing the children he had treated lively and active again, I knew there was no way this man had become a doctor for personal gain. Before he left, he gave some villagers a lecture on the health benefits of various herbs, including, laughing as he explained, Toso Wine. “This wine can prevent disease. It’s said to grant blessings and avert disasters. It wouldn’t hurt to drink a little more of it - though, remember not to go overboard!” “Of course! Thank you so much! You really saved us! Though, this wine is…?” “This wine is called Toso Wine, and it’s the wine I love most.” As I watched from the side, a little girl came up to me and grabbed my hand. “Big Sis, isn’t your name Toso Wine?” “....Y-yeah… Do you need anything?” “Then can I pray to you for a blessing?” “...What do you want to pray for?” “I want to pray that everybody never gets sick again, and for everybody to stay happy, including Mister Doctor and Big Sis!” “... sure.” “Come back sometime with Mister Doctor to play with us, Big Sis!” “Yeah.” However, as we left the town, he collapsed onto the ground, folding and crumpling like a sheet of paper. In my panic, it was all I could do to follow Master Attendant’s instructions and locate his old teacher. There was despair in the eyes of the venerable and ancient doctor, as he grabbed my Master Attendant’s hand and said in a quavering voice “Why would you… Your body was never able to take this much strain… the disease is too deep. I can treat it, but your organs are already damaged beyond repair… Child… Why would you push yourself so hard…?” “I’m a doctor, I have to heal the sick…” My head was blank. I could only stare haplessly at the old doctor, who was wiping away the tears in his eyes with his fingers. I looked at the pale young man on the bed, and realized my hands were shaking. In that instant, I realized that I was powerless. I could kill Fallen Angels, I could send gangsters packing, and I could gather herbs… but I couldn’t save him. My manic efforts to find a cure were futile. As I fell into despair, he gently took up my hand, patting it kindly. “I prefer it when you smile confidently. It wasn’t your fault. Don’t blame yourself.” It was drizzling the day he left this world he loved so much, surrounded by his friends and family. I fell in love with the taste of Toso Wine that day. The herbs in the wine reminded me of the scent of medicine that clung to his clothes. And when I had one drink too many, I could almost see him again, smiling kindly. I left the pharmacy and began wandering. After a long time, I returned to the village he had sacrificed his life to save. When we had left, it was a joyous and happy town. What was left was a dilapidated ruin, with no trace of human life. I eventually learned what had happened. The village had adopted Toso Wine as a signature drink, producing large quantities of the wine, drawing acclaim from visitors, as well as the attention of wine-loving… Fallen Angels. When I remember the promise I made to the little girl when we left, I couldn't help but laugh at my own foolishness. Even though my name is Toso Wine, I cannot grant a single blessing or wish. But at least… I can still eliminate disasters. v. Toso Wine When Tortoise Jelly found Toso Wine she was still swinging her sword despite being covered in horrific wounds. At the time, she was shrouded in the heady scent of alcohol, a berserk smile on her face, wildly attacking Fallen Angels without sparing a thought for her heavily wounded body. After receiving assistance in defeating the Fallen Angel, she merely gave Tortoise Jelly her thanks, then walked away. Seeing her stumble unsteadily away, Tortoise Jelly was unable to leave her be. He grabbed her hand, dragged her back to Forgetful Courtyard and dressed her wounds. As he was bandaging her wounds, Tortoise Jelly did not stop scolding her. “Are you trying to get yourself killed!? Where do you think you’re going with injuries like that!?” She seemed to notice Tortoise Jelly for the first time, his head bent down low as he bandaged her wounds. Her eyes went wide. She raised her head toward the roof, and began to smile. When she looked down again, she was the usual, confidently smiling Toso Wine again… You see…? There’s someone who will bandage my wounds. Can you rest a little easier now… “Hey, you. Come have a drink with me! How about it?” After encountering the destruction of the village, Toso Wine had wielded her sword again in the name of eliminating disaster. She wandered aimlessly without a home, pursuing and killing all Fallen Angels in an insane rage. Despite constantly being covered in heavy wounds, she had never learned how to dress and clean the wounds… until she met this fool who just couldn’t leave her be. From that day onward, Forgetful Courtyard gained a regular guest. Regardless of where she ran off to, Toso Wine would always eventually return to this tiny peach garden if she was injured. With wine as gifts, of course. Tortoise Jelly and the other residents eventually grew accustomed to the behavior of their unreliable guest. Once, after a drinking session, they tried to dissuade her from constantly going out to hunt Fallen Angels. There was no need to pursue the Fallen Angels so doggedly, and it would also give her friends here one less matter to worry about, they said. However, the already drunk Toso Wine merely hiccuped heartily, and laughed a self-deprecating laugh. “If I can’t even avert dishashter *hic* what righsht do I have… with a name like thish, thish wine was *hic* hish favorite wine. He… he rishked his life to save that village. Tha- that girl… she was only as high as my waist. If I can’t even avert disaster, how can I refer to myself as Toso Wine? This sin… If I’m the only one who has to bear it… It would be enough… It would be enough…” Category:Food Soul Story